In my experience full blown grown up financial responsibility and enthusiasm for aviation can be at odds with each other. I have always enjoyed flying, and I have always wanted to fly - but only recently have I been able to afford to fly.

You have flown for most of your life, and have had periods of time where you didn’t fly - did you miss flying when you were taking a break? Are there other hobbies or interests you would rather pursue? Is there anything else that gives you that same thrill or feeling of accomplishment?

I know for me it’s hard to beat that feeling you get when you absolutely get it right on landing and just grease it in… I can’t replace the feeling of freedom I get when I fly at sunrise on a calm morning and get that view you only can get from the air.

Every pilot has a first flight, and every pilot has a last - some know it’s their last and some don’t. We all have friends who didn’t know it was their last flight - some lived through it and some did not. My Grandfather took his last flight in 1996 when he was 79, he let his Ercoupe get too slow and too low on final, caught a ravine just before the runway and bent it good on landing. He and his brother walked away, but he knew it was time to hang up his wings (not to mention that Grandma insisted). I can tell you that he missed flying until the day he died.

hirschr wrote:In my experience full blown grown up financial responsibility and enthusiasm for aviation can be at odds with each other. I have always enjoyed flying, and I have always wanted to fly - but only recently have I been able to afford to fly.

You have flown for most of your life, and have had periods of time where you didn’t fly - did you miss flying when you were taking a break? Are there other hobbies or interests you would rather pursue? Is there anything else that gives you that same thrill or feeling of accomplishment?

I know for me it’s hard to beat that feeling you get when you absolutely get it right on landing and just grease it in… I can’t replace the feeling of freedom I get when I fly at sunrise on a calm morning and get that view you only can get from the air.

Every pilot has a first flight, and every pilot has a last - some know it’s their last and some don’t. We all have friends who didn’t know it was their last flight - some lived through it and some did not. My Grandfather took his last flight in 1996 when he was 79, he let his Ercoupe get too slow and too low on final, caught a ravine just before the runway and bent it good on landing. He and his brother walked away, but he knew it was time to hang up his wings (not to mention that Grandma insisted). I can tell you that he missed flying until the day he died.

Is flying just something you do, or is it part of who you are?

Great post.That last line says it all.

48 years and still enjoy it. What's more, it's fun taking care of the machine I fly.

I quit when I had my daughter. There's an immense challenge in getting a license and it changes you as a person. I'm now able to multi-task at work better than I ever have before. And I'm able to deal with short-term stress much better than ever before.

What made it easy to shelve flying was a limited numbers of things to do with my license. I've taken every friend and family member I have for a flight and really enjoyed that. I once flew to Pennsylvania and at a $200 lunch. But outside of that the air is so restricted in Washington DC that I don't have anywhere fun to go. I've seen everything within an hour flight time of my home airport.

I'll pick it up again someday when my daughter doesn't demand so much of my time. I don't regret any of the time I spent in the air. I just wish there were more things for me to do.

Have flown for over 50 years and consider it my "relaxation" in life. I am a PP with a 3rd class flying a Light Sport. The day I cannot pass a 3rd class, I will hang up the log books and flight jacket. My late father flew right up to his 94th, in fact, up to 2 weeks before he passed. It's an individual choice for anyone and depends on priorities and medical condition.

What you're saying, Don, is that your father decided, two weeks after his last flight, that it was time to quit.

As I've said before, I want to be Ray Stitts when I grow up.

The opinions posted are those of one CFI, and do not necessarily represent the FAA or its lawyers.Prof H Paul ShuchPhD CFII DPE LSRM-A/GL/WS/PPC iRMTAvSport LLC, KLHVfly@AvSport.orgAvSport.org facebook.com/SportFlyingSportPilotExaminer.US

I think if you still have some goals to accomplish in flying them its good to keep working towards them.

I've been fortunate to be able to have achieved most of my personal goals in aviation and these days it's mostly ice on the cake. There are still some minor personal things I'd like to do and of course I try and plan each flight to go as well as I'd like. They usually don't only because I'm my biggest critic and so it's virtually impossible to please myself!

Money, retirement and living a comfortable life are really important and you have to come to terms with those things. At the airline guys who said their personal life and hobbies were getting in the way of their flying schedule usually realised it was time for them to retire. I think if you have something else to do that will fill the time you would have sent flying that is just as fulfilling, or more so, it might be time to move on. You come to terms with it.

I live under the flight path into CLT and I usually look up at each passing airliner and remember that I used to do that. But I can tell the young boy that was me, who would have given anything to fly, that I did it, I really did, and though I miss the flying I don't miss being at the airline anymore.

Currently I love being able to go flying in my own little plane when the itch arises. I don't have any other pastimes or hobbies to compete with flying and so this is the one real vice that I have. It makes no economic sense to own and operate my own plane but the experience is priceless, and for now, at 63, I'll continue. If and when I stop I'd like to have as few regrets as possible.

drseti wrote:What you're saying, Don, is that your father decided, two weeks after his last flight, that it was time to quit.

As I've said before, I want to be Ray Stitts when I grow up.

Guess you are right. Haven't had much time to fly this year between handling the estate and bad weather when I have time. Still trying to sell Ray's mountaintop estate overlooking Flabob and Riverside airports. Not much call for a 6000 sq. ft. house with a 360 degree view overlooking the airports within the general population. Eventually, some pilot who wants a compass rose/helicopter landing pad in his or her driveway will take it. Best always... Don Stits

I quit flying in my 20s because I had to choose between it and law school. Then I moved to So. Cal. and decided the airspace/WX was too complex for a low-time VFR pilot who was working 60 hours a week as a young lawyer. Then I got married and my new wife wasn't keen on the risk. Then we had our first daughter - with multiple disabilities - and I didn't feel like I could take the time away. Then inertia took over ... then career ... then a divorce ... kids grew up ... re-marriage ... moved to Texas ... divorce round 2 (talk about impacting financial ability to fly!!!) ...

Pretty soon 30 years "flew" by. The whole time, I looked up at every airplane going over. I knew I missed it but figured I was too old/unsafe/out of practice/pick the excuse ... But then cancer struck and and then it struck again ... and I realized that among the many things that the Almighty was trying to tell me was "Life is short - get back in the cockpit, dumb-a**!"

So I did and thank goodness I listened to that little voice ... and thank goodness the LSA option was available to permit it!

In any case, I think most (but by no means all) pilots quit at some point, sometimes for extended periods, usually with what seem like good reasons at the time. And in the end ... we all hang up our wings at some point. But I hope to have another 20+ years of at least recreational flight ahead of me ...

Long answer to the short question but I think the real answer is that every pilot's journey is different ... but once a pilot, always a pilot.

I have never thought about quitting flying, but I have thought about what would happen if I had no choice in the matter.There are two days in a pilots life that he fears most. One is waking up knowing that today will be his last flight. The second is waking up not knowing today will be his last flight.

eyeflygps wrote:From time-to-time, I think about quitting flying. It's not that I don't still enjoy flying, but after 52 years of flying, I sometimes wonder if I should continue to spend the money I do on a hobby. I think this is the main reason I backed out of a really good deal to purchase a SkyCatcher recently.

My current plans are to continue to rent for another 14 months, then quit flying on my 70th birthday. I used my deposit on the SkyCatcher to pre-pay my rental account for the next 12 to 14 months. I must say, my budget looks a lot better without a line item for flying.

In all seriousness, when I turn 70, I plan to reevaluate my health and finances and decide if continuing to fly is in my best interest and that of my family (wife). I quit once from 1975 to 1980 when I lived in Wisconsin. I quit again in 2005 to 2012 and spent my mad money drag racing all over the country.

My wife and I have some money coming, so I guess it will mostly be a question of health and desire. We shall see. Just food for thought.

This sounds pretty reasonable, actually. Flying is just another activity that you can quit for whatever reason. Personally, nothing yet happened to me to make me re-evaluate my flying pursuit, but I'm quite a bit younger, so I may yet quit it in the future.

As long as my health holds and I remain solvent, I can't ever picture myself giving up flying. Now, moderating forums, that's another matter!

The opinions posted are those of one CFI, and do not necessarily represent the FAA or its lawyers.Prof H Paul ShuchPhD CFII DPE LSRM-A/GL/WS/PPC iRMTAvSport LLC, KLHVfly@AvSport.orgAvSport.org facebook.com/SportFlyingSportPilotExaminer.US

Thanks for your kind words, Richard. You guys and gals make it fun (most of the time...)

The opinions posted are those of one CFI, and do not necessarily represent the FAA or its lawyers.Prof H Paul ShuchPhD CFII DPE LSRM-A/GL/WS/PPC iRMTAvSport LLC, KLHVfly@AvSport.orgAvSport.org facebook.com/SportFlyingSportPilotExaminer.US

I was planning to hang it up at 70. I made that age feeling pretty good, so I went for 71. Now, I'm shooting for 72--or at least until I can get a new engine installed and working perfectly on my Sting, before offering it for sale.

For me, the issue is to fly as long as possible, until I detect dumbness setting in (based on my family's genetics & life-histories, I'm already into the danger zone), leading to too many memory lapses and errors of judgement. This goal in turn leads to an important question: Will I even know when the critical turning point has been reached? I'd like to think so; however, I've recently watched as two friends developed early-onset dementia and/or alzheimer's, and were largely unaware of their symptoms. So this could be tricky. And even if I do recognize I've gotten too stupid to continue flying, will it really matter and make me actually hang up the airplane keys? I guess time will tell soon enough.

Excuse me now, I think I'll go see if the fog has pulled back enough for a $50 luncheon flight.

I have been flying for almost 52 years Most of that in Alaska where I lived most of my adult life. From age 18 to age 60. Now 72.

Currently we live on a residential airpark in Oregon. Hangar attached to house. Have owned 9 airplanes. Life is good.

Although I know the time will come, it's not here yet. In the meantime I enjoy it. Makes my worries go away. I do the majority of my own maintenance and am building an RV-12. Hopefully I will finish it before I'm grounded. I'm only 7 years into that 2 year project.

As long as I enjoy it and can afford it without hardship, and as long as I am safe, I will keep going.